


365/fantastic that you're here

by ohnoshefell



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Brief Appearances, F/M, Flowers, Fluff and Humor, Friends to Lovers, Gendrya - Freeform, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 11:42:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22969447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohnoshefell/pseuds/ohnoshefell
Summary: Gendry didn't really do people. He avoided them. They were loud and brash and couldn't be reasoned with. It's why he and Jon got on so well.He never imagined that there'd be anybody else he would get along with as well as he did with Jon.But then Arya.-or-Arya moves in with her brother Jon and his roommate Gendry and Gendry finds himself falling harder and harder for her over the course of a year.
Relationships: Arya Stark/Gendry Waters
Comments: 49
Kudos: 162





	365/fantastic that you're here

**Author's Note:**

> This has been one tough week and writing this helped ease my mind a bit.
> 
> Hope you like it and hope you're all staying safe

**August**

Gendry didn't really do people. He avoided them. They were loud and brash and couldn't be reasoned with. It's why he and Jon got on so well.

He never imagined that there'd be anybody else he would get along with as well as he did with Jon. 

But then Arya.

It wasn't a problem that Jon's little sister was staying with them for the week while she toured the campus of the university they went to, the university she would potentially be transferring to.

"Kings Landing's getting too muggy for me, Oldtown seems like a nice fit though." She had said when she first got there. He couldn't really blame her. Kings Landing _was_ notoriously humid.

It wasn't a problem that she was staying in their guest bedroom right across from his very own bedroom and that she seemed to get up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night at exactly the same time he did.

He just pretended not to notice the big t-shirt with the bull on it that she wore to bed. The big t-shirt that was most definitely his and not Jon's.

"I'm so sorry! I thought it was Jon's, it was in his laundry basket. I can change out of it if-"

"No! No, it's fine. Suit's you better anyways." He cleared his throat and walked past her and into the bathroom, trying desperately hard to get the image of her bare legs and disheveled hair out of his mind.

It wasn't a problem that she made the best chili he'd ever had or how brightly she smiled when he told her or how loud she laughed when Jon pouted.

"What about my chili?" 

"He said it himself Jon. Your chili has nothing on my chili." She winked at him and his eyes widened a little and his breath caught in his throat, which wasn't a problem at all.

It wasn't a problem that they liked all the same movies and bands and were obsessed with the same graphic novel that Jon always rolled his eyes at. It made that week memorable and he had been over the moon to have someone to gush over 'The Mummy Returns' with.

It was all very much okay. None of these things were a problem.

They only became a problem when the week ended, she left from Oldtown and he realized he had it _bad._

He'd only known her a week and it was supposed to be a temporary crush because they always went away, they were always harmless and he absolutely _never_ fell for anybody.

Except now he maybe fell for her.

He was absolutely, undeniably taken with Arya but even that wasn't really the problem.

Jon walked into the living room, phone in hand, smile wide on his face.

"That's amazing!" Jon paused to smile at Gendry who was reading while laying on the couch.

"Arya's transferring over here, mate. Isn't that great?"

Now _that._

 _That_ was the problem.

Gendry gave Jon a half convincing smile, "Fantastic."

* * *

**September**

He's made a lot of poor choices in his life. 

Falling slowly for Arya is not a poor choice. Falling slowly for Jon's little sister is.

That's what she is, his little sister. And it's not exactly something that gets in the way of him liking her, it's just something that concerns him because Jon loved her more than anything and he doesn't think Jon would take very kindly to Gendry getting the flutters he did whenever he thought of Arya.

It wasn't something he could help truly. He didn't know how to deal with it, he'd never dealt with it before.

He had steered clear of people and getting tangled in a mess of emotions ever since he was a boy and the only emotion he knew how to express was anger.

And he was really good at it, good at being angry. He hasn't been angry in a while, but he's mostly just kept to himself ever since he had graduated high school.

But Arya's here now and she makes him feel all sorts of things and he's starting to get a little angry that it had to happen like this.

A month into her transfer, everything was fine. He was fine, really. Or he had been until he remembered everything running through his head and his heart. But he kept it to himself. Nobody knew how he felt except him and his stupid thoughts

It was the middle of September and she was sat in their living room, scrolling through a reading on her laptop for one of her classes.

She had been staying in the guest bedroom of their apartment ever since she transferred over from Kings Landing. It was a double edge sword, a blessing and a curse.

"Any new listings?" Jon asks, walking into the living room.

Arya looks up from her laptop and smiles at him before shaking her head.

"Every apartment I've toured has been a little off, too far from campus or the people asking for roommates were a little too weird, right Gendry?" She laughed in his direction and he nodded his head in agreement.

He'd gone with her on a few of the tours and found everything she said to be true, although he might credit that to his aversion of people.

"Especially that one guy with the red hair that had a whites stripe, what was his name?"

"Jaqen." Gendry answered, his eyes narrowed at the memory of visiting that creeps minimalist style apartment with grey walls and black and white doors.

"What was so off about him?" Jon asked.

Arya's features scrunched up, "He seemed like he ran a cult. Had a bunch of paintings of hollowed out faces all over the walls. Gave me some real stranger danger vibes."

"Gross. Well, you've already made yourself at home here and it's not like Gendry and I ever have any actual guests staying over. If Gendry's cool with it, why don't you just move in with us?" Jon spoke after a moment.

Her eyes brightened as a hopeful smile took over her face at the prospect of moving in with her favorite brother and his roommate who had been falling fast for her.

So what if he'd have to swallow down his feelings, he wouldn't subject her to having to apartment hunt any longer so he sent her a smile and a quick nod.

She jumped up and wrapped her arms around Jon in a hug before leaping onto the couch where he was sat and wrapping her arms around his neck.

He felt his eyes go a little wide and his heart was hammering in his chest.

"Thank you, Gendry. You have no idea how much easier you've made everything."

He hesitantly wrapped his arms around her and hugged back.

"Of course."

She pulled away and she was absolutely beaming. Gendry felt something flutter in his heart.

"Well, I guess you can officially unpack all your boxes in your new room." Jon said.

Arya smiled over at him and walked from the living room and to her new bedroom.

He had a new roommate. 

A new roommate that he really fucking fancied.

* * *

**October**

It was well and truly fall. The wind was brisk and there were orange lights hanging from front porch to front porch.

Halloween decorations littered all of Oldtown and it smelled like apple and sweets in the air.

She loved Halloween from what he'd heard about her from Jon before he actually ever got to know her.

Living with her now, he _knows_ it.

There's a bowl of mixed candies in the center of their coffee table and she wrapped purple and orange fairy lights around the railing of their balcony, with little black bats dangling as well.

Whenever he'd or Jon would come home and she'd see either of them down in their spirits, she'd start playing the monster mash which almost always pulled a smile from him.

She did it really well.

Every weekend before Halloween weekend consisted of horror movie marathons, but she _refused_ to watch any of the 'Saw' movies.

October, he thinks, looks very good on Arya.

Her hair is brown and it curls at the ends right where it falls past her shoulders, not short but not exactly long.

And her eyes, gods her eyes. They were probably the most alluring ones he'd ever seen.

Grey and shiny and perfect for Halloween. Perfect for anything really.

Her nose was slender and it fit her face well, placed perfectly above her lips.

She was short, a lot shorter than him. 

It was something he always took time to tease her about (especially when things were on shelves way too high for her to reach).

Her nails were always painted black although he never actually saw her paint them.

He never payed so much attention to how someone looked before, but then again he'd never seen someone as beautiful as she was.

He knew it'd be a lie to himself and everybody else if he said she didn't take his breath away the first time he'd seen her.

It's a struggle biting his tongue to keep himself from saying how fine and fast his feelings are growing for her, but he knows how happy he is at seeing her everyday.

"Why aren't you wearing your costume?"

Her eyes were wide and her hands were on her hips while she waited for an answer.

He'd barely got a foot in the door before she ambushed him with the question. 

He took a look around the living room and saw Jon sitting on the couch dressed in brown slacks and a brown shirt with light stripes. Over that was a brown velvet vest with a pattern of small leaves all over, a pocket watch hanging out of the small pocket on the vest. His look was complete with brown leather dress shoes and a long light brown velvet trench coat that had even lighter stripes over it. 

Jon had his mess of curls down and they fell comfortably on his shoulders and Gendry didn't think he knew anybody better to dress as Sirius Black for Halloween than him.

He guffawed at the sight, "You've never dressed for Halloween before Jon?" 

Jon narrowed his eyes at Gendry, "Hey, it's different. Arya asked. Pyp and Grenn are throwing that party down over at Starry Sept."

Gendry shook his head before Jon kept speaking.

"Besides, Sirius Black is very cool."

It was then that Gendry took in Arya's costume.

Her brown locks were curled and pulled back in a ponytail with a gold band, a few curled strands falling to the front and delicately framing her face.

Her small feet were clad in brown leather sandals. She was wearing a silky purple dress with two round gold caps placed against her shoulders. 

She looked ethereal and he thought that was kind of the point.

"Megara?"

She beamed at him and nodded, "It's obvious then? Oh, great. I was worried nobody would be able to tell."

He smiled softly at her, "I can tell."

Her eyes got a little spark in them, her face quite mischievous, "Perfect. Then you're going to love your costume. Now go put it on!"

\---

He knew it was on purpose, but he had absolutely no idea what it could've meant on Arya's part that she got him the matching counterpart to her costume.

He was Hercules in all his orangey brown leather wearing glory completing his costume with a short blue cape, a brown leather belt with a giant gold token wrapped around his middle and a thin red headband strapped against the mop of black hair on his head, pressing a few pieces to his forehead.

She's seen Hercules before, that he knew. Probably thousands of times even. It was her favorite Disney movie so of course she'd be Megara.

She was perfect for it.

He just didn't know how to process the fact that she chose him to be her Hercules.

If Jon noticed that they were in a matching couples costume (which he definitely did), well he was very good at not saying a word about it.

Everybody else at Starry Sept however weren't as good at not saying a word about it as Jon was.

Starry Sept looked like it never had before.

It must have been a sin in some other lifetime for them to have music blaring through speakers all around with Halloween decorations set up everywhere and people dancing all around each other or standing off to the side drinking and laughing about gods knows what.

Pyp and Grenn were the first to say something about it when they opened the doors to the building for the three of them.

"Well well, if it isn't my favorite divine Greek hero and his wife, the princess of Thebes." Pyp smiled.

Arya just laughed, "How much have you had to drink Pyp?"

Pyp mocked offense, "You think I'd be able to say all those words if I were drunk Arya?"

"Not Arya, princess of Thebes."

Gendry only shook his head at their exchange and Pyp looked over at him and smiled.

"Who knew all it'd take to finally get you to come to one of our parties would be little miss Arya Stark."

Gendry had felt his face heating up and walked forward to get inside the sept and be anywhere but there, where his growing feelings for Arya would've been made very clear from the red on his cheeks.

The party itself wasn't half bad, granted he only hung out with Arya and Jon most of the night, but it wasn't half bad.

It felt like Halloween and everybody had on all sorts of costumes from the Ghostbusters to the gang from Scooby Doo and even a few girls dressed like the mother of dragons.

The snacks were great and he didn't drink any alcohol but he indulged Arya in drinking the weird black liquid that had dry ice over it.

Jon was asked a couple hundred times to say out loud some of the spells from Harry Potter, from "Lumos" to "Stupefy" (which Grenn, who was dressed as Ron, pretended to be stunned by when he did).

And when they played the 'Monster Mash', Arya's face lit up so bright that he couldn't stop her from pulling him to the dance floor so they could dance together.

It was the first party he'd gone to in a while and dancing to the 'Monster Mash' with Arya alone was the single highlight of his night.

Jon had smiled over at them and he pretended not to notice him recording a video of them (Jon sent it to their family group chat and Arya spared him from asking and forwarded it to him anyways and he watches it whenever he feels like he's taking things a little too seriously).

He wondered more than once that night if Arya might have been starting to feel something for him too, if the smile in her eyes every time she looked into his was there just for him.

He wondered if she knew how he felt and that's why they were matching, why they were 'Meg and Herc'. They were perfect that way.

He hoped so, even though he knew he shouldn't have, he hoped because how did she make going out feel so easy?

How did she make these little moments seem so much more than little?

That night was everything he didn't even imagine it was going to be and was the perfect way to tie together the end of the month, topping October off with the perfect ribbon of fall, fun and all things Arya.

* * *

**November**

Ever since Halloween, he can't get it out of his head how right it felt to be by her side, even if that was the only place he had been all night.

He thinks about the transition he might have to face now that it's November, the month made for families.

November is nice. It's orange and yellow and it always smells like cinnamon.

It never smelled like cinnamon before but then Arya moved in with them and she loved candles. 

He loves candles now too.

It's another element added to the atmosphere that he unknowingly created for himself where Arya was regarded.

He really shouldn't have, he thinks. 

He shouldn't have let himself get so deep, feel so many things but she was always there, always kind and true.

 _And_ she told the funniest stories.

Not all of them were the funniest per se, but she would always laugh before she even got halfway through any of them and her laughter was loud and warm and contagious and he would live in it if he could.

It's when he has thoughts like _those_ that he tries to remind himself about the things he doesn't like about November.

For instance, in Oldtown it was always quite chilly in the later fall, the promise of an early winter.

Arya and Jon would shake their head at him whenever he complained about it being cold and Arya only mildly teased him about it, calling him a wimpy southern boy, but she'd always turn the heat on for him anyways.

When he thinks of that he doesn't think he can count it as a thing he dislikes about November anymore, so instead he thinks of how its the semester winding down to an end, so everybody's stressed and trying to get their shit together for finals.

But that doesn't work so well either because Arya found new ways of making these stressful times seem not so stressful.

She'd leave little sticky notes of encouragement on the coffee pot and cabinets before she'd leave for her classes for him and Jon.

She'd buy snacks for all three of them as a reward whenever (in her case) she'd get her papers done and (in his and Jon's case) they'd get more TA hours done.

So it didn't seem fair to say he disliked that either when Arya was trying her hardest for all of them not to.

He thinks about how with November comes Thanksgiving and how he doesn't have a family to go back home to. 

This was his home.

He'd like to dislike that, but Arya and Jon, both on their separate turns (he's almost positive it wasn't planned) invited him back home to Winterfell with them.

It's not that which makes him start to like Thanksgiving, but rather when he politely refuses, they stay there with him.

When he had woken up the day before Thanksgiving and saw them still sat on the couch watching some Netflix show, he felt his throat go dry.

"What are you guys still doing here?" He said, scratching his head slightly.

Arya smiled at him and Jon just shrugged, "Didn't feel much like taking a plane back home."

Gendry's eyes widened, "But it's thanksgiving."

Jon furrowed his brows, "No, actually tomorrow's Thanksgiving."

Gendry rolled his eyes before they land on Arya's face, "But, what about your family?"

Arya shook her head, "You're our family too."

Gendry, for all that he had been standing tall in the middle of the hallway, felt like the wind had been knocked out of him with that one.

"Besides, there's always Christmas. And you're _definitely_ coming to Winterfell for that." Arya smiled.

They had made mashed potatoes and veggie stir fry and for dessert, Jon ran out and got them two tubs of rocky road and mint chocolate chip.

He loved mint chocolate chip and that night he learned that Arya did too.

And so he had no reason to dislike November.

Not this year.

* * *

**December**

It was an annual thing, feeling a little bluer than usual around this time.

Usually, December's for him are hard.

He's known this since he was 13 and his mother passed.

They were, it seemed like, the longest and fastest month of the year all at once.

He understood how the holidays made the time fly, how the Christmas lights strung up everywhere made the world turn a little faster.

He also understood how the winter, with all its biting air and sad, grey skies made time stop for a bit, made the world go in slow motion.

Usually, it always went slow. 

But living with Jon, they'd normally go a little faster because they'd put up a small, plastic Christmas tree in the corner of their living room and Jon would give him a gift before departing to Winterfell.

December was lonely and it always made room for his anger, something he'd worked hard at keeping at bay ever since he'd gotten to Oldtown.

Jon would always invite him back to Winterfell in the years before Arya had moved in with them but, much like Thanksgiving, he'd politely decline.

He didn't really see it as his place, he felt like he'd be intruding.

Plus they were Starks.

Their family practically owned the North. 

That was nothing short of intimidating for him.

But this year, once finals are all done and gone, Jon invites him again.

And it's different this time because so does Arya and well he can't really say no to Arya, now can he?

He learned much too soon in all the few months that she's lived with them that saying no to her was something he was pretty much incapable of.

He argued with her a lot and he learned very quickly that they weren't really ever saying anything to hurt each other.

They just never really knew how to say what they really meant.

He tacked it under the list in his mind of things he has in common with her and he almost slaps himself upside the head for having that list in the first place.

Before they leave to Arya and Jon's home for the holidays, they set up the tiny Christmas tree in their living room and hang up lights around the windowsill. 

Arya, unbeknownst to he and Jon, set up three stockings for the each of them. 

They were all different and unique.

His was blue and had a pattern of black bulls on it, hers was white with a pattern of grey wolves on it and Jon's was the inverse of hers.

She smiled at them proudly and he hadn't liked Christmas in a long time, but he likes it now.

They'd taken a plane to Winterfell and it was his first time ever being on one before but Arya and Jon were good at distracting him from whatever fear this might have inspired in him.

When they get there, its all white and snowy and exactly what he thought the North would be except ten times more. 

The cold hugged your skin and if you weren't sure that you were in winter, the red on your cheeks and glassiness of your eyes more than spoke for you.

Their house is absolutely breathtaking and he can picture perfectly all the stories Arya's told him about growing up there unfolding before his eyes.

"We're home!" She called out as soon as she opened the front door.

Already there was loud noises, voices and a few dogs barking all over the house and in an instant a whole slew of people were gathering around Arya and Jon, wrapping them in hugs and kisses and showering them with greetings.

Once they were done, Arya pulled Gendry forward to stand between him and Jon.

"This is Gendry." Jon said, smiling at Gendry's apparent nervousness.

He didn't think they were lying about how much family they had, but it still was a lot to wrap his head around.

Robb, the eldest, was taller than Jon though he figured everyone except for Arya was taller than Jon. He had red curls and bright blue eyes, taking after his mother, and didn't hesitate in pulling Gendry into a hug after being introduced.

Sansa who had the same features as their mother, was polite and kept mostly to herself.

Bran, who was born after Arya, was kind and had a plethora of fun facts in his mind that he'd happily offer whenever they'd fit into conversation.

Rickon, the youngest and much like all his siblings except for Arya and Jon favored his mother in looks, was wild and happy and always on his feet.

Their parents were entirely regal. They looked like royalty and with good reason. They were Starks.

Arya and Jon took after their father, Ned Stark, with long faces, grey eyes and brown hair that curled at the ends.

He was kindhearted in nature and when he first saw Gendry, his eyes went a little wide like he'd seen a ghost or something.

He made sure to let Gendry know he was welcome anytime.

Catelyn Stark, although a bit cold at first, was an excellent hostess. He understood her aversion to guests, always putting her children's safety first before welcoming anybody into her home especially after the break in at their house when they were kids that ended in a gun shot and with Bran in a wheelchair.

But once she realized Gendry was truly a friend to Arya and Jon, she quickly warmed up to him.

He had never had a Christmas like this before.

His Christmases had always been him and his mother watching old Christmas movies on their couch and then exchanging two or three gifts at midnight and having an early breakfast at the diner.

Once she passed, that had mostly just come and gone. He didn't really have any family to spend Christmas with. 

He'd still watch the movies but it felt lonely. He'd go to the diners still, but just for a coffee.

Once he got to Oldtown and met Jon, it felt a little more nice. A little more normal. They'd decorate, exchange a gift and then Jon would leave. 

Being with the Stark's for the holidays, he sort of wishes he had took Jon up on the offer of visiting for Christmas countless times before Arya.

But he's here now and it's loud and exciting.

It's red and white and green, with gold lights everywhere and the smell of pine and peppermint dancing through the air.

It's Arya giving him an original movie poster for 'The Mummy Returns' as well as a new bull t-shirt (a joke he ends up keeping between him, Arya and his red cheeks).

Much to his surprise, the other Starks got him gifts too.

"You guys really didn't have to." He said and Catelyn waved him off.

"Please, we wouldn't have you over for Christmas if we didn't plan on spoiling you like the rest of this lot."

He smiled at her sincerity and only hoped they liked his gifts for them half as much as he liked theirs.

There was tinsel everywhere, wreaths and gold leaves decorating every railing they could touch and mistletoe too.

He didn't notice the mistletoe until he and Arya crossed paths beneath it and she laughed when she pointed up at it and she also took upon herself to take his breath away by leaning forward and pecking him lightly on the lips.

"Mistletoe. I don't make the rules." She laughed and he looked at her with wide eyes and red cheeks. He was certain his pupils had been dilated as he watched her walk away and placed a single hand up towards his lips, remembering what it felt like when only seconds ago she placed hers on his.

He didn't count on ever kissing Arya once in his life, let alone twice, but that's exactly what happens over the holiday break when New Year's eve comes and the Stark's have their party and when the clock strikes twelve, Arya gives him a kiss on the cheek.

Or at least that's what she had been going to do if he hadn't turned his head to kiss her on the cheek at the exact same time.

Their lips met and this time she was surprised, but the look in her eyes when they pull away makes him pretty sure that she doesn't mind.

Her smile definitely does too.

December, which was almost always blue for him, wasn't blue anymore.

It was red and white and green and Arya's lips on his.

* * *

**January**

The first month of the year was always a little tricky to deal with not just for him but for everybody.

He's always considered it a bit of a transitional month. Everybody's blending their lives from last year into their lives in the next and it doesn't really ever change for him but everybody else seems dead set on following their new years resolution (his was to glare less, courtesy of Arya, though he finds it hard with how stupid everyone around him save for his roommates are).

He was constantly writing 2018 instead of 2019 and arranging his schedule for the semester is a little stressful but nothing he can't handle. 

Jon is around a lot less often ever since he started dating the red head that always visited him during his TA hours. He thinks her name is Ygritte.

Most of his time around the first month is spent trying to find ways to fill the time, and more than once, he catches Arya milling around the living room, presumably doing the same.

It's in these moments of nothing that he wants to tell her how he feels, how he's been feeling for a while, but he doesn't see how that would go over.

He doesn't really know what the end result of it all would be.

He doesn't even know if she likes him back but he thinks she might, especially with how close they've gotten and so fast too.

He helps her when she says she's going to clean the apartment otherwise she'll die of boredom.

When she starts talking to him about her problems with school and why she hated Kings Landing and being there with him and Jon really had made the change so much more delightful and easier for her, he feels his heart wrapping itself around her words.

He finds himself cataloging every good thing he's felt in the last five months and completely understanding that they've all been connected to her.

He finds himself easing into the idea that falling for Arya isn't a scary thing because she's Jon's little sister.

It's scary because it's Arya and she's probably the best person he knows, scary because he's never fallen this hard for anybody before.

It's scary because he thinks she might feel the same and he doesn't know if either of them are ready for what happens if they cross that line.

Worst case scenario is things get a little awkward but he doesn't even think that'd be possible with Arya. It was always easy with her, even when it's hard.

But instead of worrying himself about this, he just swallows his words.

Pretty soon, the term would start and there'd be no time to worry about his feelings. 

He's practically mastered keeping his feelings to himself at this point. He's been doing it since last August.

How much harder could it get?

* * *

**February**

Usually, it was the shortest month. 

Usually, he barely even noticed when it arrived. 

It always came and went in a flurry of reds and pinks and even some purples.

Overpriced chocolates and endless rows of flowers and teddy bears, he didn't really care about February.

He didn't care about Valentine's day either, but Arya came home one day with a box of chocolates from Ned Dayne and he'd be lying if he said he didn't care a little.

Especially considering he got flowers for her.

"Ned Dayne? That kid in your urban anthropology class?" Jon had laughed when she told him.

She nodded and laughed a little, "Yeah, but he gave everyone something, even the professor. I don't think it means anything."

She looks him in the eyes when she says that, and he wonders if she's trying to convince him of her words or herself.

He doesn't need much convincing though when at the end of the night she knocks on his bedroom door and gives him a card for the holiday.

"I know you don't really care much about Valentine's day. I usually don't either, but I saw this card and thought of you and just couldn't not get it." She had laughed softly.

The card in question was red and said "You're adora-BULL!" on it with a little sketch of a cute little bull on the side.

She wrote on the inside of the card, "Happy Valentine's day! You're the only person I'd buy into this holiday for! Love, your favorite roommate (don't tell Jon lol) xx".

He felt a little breathless and smiled at her softly before he walked back into his room and walked out with the bouquet of daisies and sunflowers.

Her face lit up and she wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

"They're so beautiful. Thank you."

When she pulled away, she had that look in her eyes again and he felt like the world was disappearing around him, only leaving room for Arya and everything he felt about her.

"You're welcome. Happy Valentine's day."

He brushed back a piece of hair that rested against her cheek and tucked it behind her ear, listening only to the sound of her sucking in a breath and beat of his heart against him chest.

Her eyes were lighter somehow, like metal when you forge it.

He leaned down and pressed his lips lightly against her cheek and when he pulled away, she was blushing and biting down on her bottom lip.

She gave him a small smile before saying goodnight and going back to her room.

It was usually the shortest month, but for the last two weeks of it, he can't get Valentine's day out of his mind.

* * *

**March**

The term had a bit of a slow start but things were finally kicking into full gear and they were all feeling it now.

March was the month of madness, which included midterms, St.Patrick's day, a bunch of sports teams going crazy and starting their seasons or ending them.

He truly felt the buzz of student life alive and all around him more than he ever had before.

A big part in that was Arya and how he'd pick her up from the end of her classes on Wednesday's in the late afternoon. 

After he'd pick her, they would drive around for a bit, just enjoying the brisk breeze and enjoying the melting snow and now long lasting sun.

Sometimes they'd stop for ice cream, other times they'd head to the grocery store and replenish whatever had been used up back at the flat, but they mostly just drove with music filtering through his old car stereo and Arya singing along _even if_ she didn't know the words.

Those were his favorites because she'd be mumbling out the words trying to make them make sense and would only sing loudly and proudly when parts that she knew would come up.

Arya wasn't very much like anyone else he's ever been in a car with. She wasn't like anyone else he's ever known.

She was a free spirit wrapped around in tenderness and laughter.

She was nothing short of extraordinary, completely remarkable and she was probably the most stubborn person he'd ever met (although she sometimes liked to argue that it was the other way around and he was stubborn as a bull).

Their friendship had only been solidifying more and more with countless time being spent on thinking about each other, thinking about wanting to be more.

He doesn't know if he'll ever get there but he think's he'll have to try his luck on it.

He doesn't know what it is that pushes him, what the final straw is that kicks it into gear but he feels that cord snap when during the middle of midterms he gets home and sees Arya and Ned Dayne studying on the couch.

"You must be Gendry!" Ned said brightly. His hair was blonde, his blue eyes were bright and his smile was blinding.

He just furrowed his brow and looked between him and Arya.

Arya's eyebrows were raised, "This is Ned."

Gendry gave his head a slight nod and gave Ned a tight lipped smile.

"I gotta tell you, Arya's description of you doesn't do you justice, you are much more handsome-"

"Ned!"

"What?" He said innocently and he saw Arya's cheeks go pink.

"Sorry?" Gendry asked.

Ned laughed and smiled, "Nothing, just I've heard so much about you from Arya. I wonder how she has anytime to get an A+ in Urban Anthro when all she ever does is talk to me about-"

"That's enough out of you, Edric Dayne."

Arya's eyes were narrowed at Ned and he shrugged his shoulders sheepishly and smiled at Gendry.

"I'll just go back to studying." He said and Gendry heard the laugh in his voice.

Arya didn't look Gendry in the eyes at all for the rest of that exchange or even after Ned left, mostly averting them while she blushed to herself but she didn't need to look at him because now he knew all that he needed to know.

He knew that she at least felt _something_ for him.

* * *

**April**

Spring might have technically started in the middle of March, but it was in full effect now with April infiltrating their senses.

And Spring time in Oldtown was something that they couldn't deny was at best, out of this world.

Flowers of all sorts were blooming everywhere that anyone would walk past. The sun was setting later and the nights were lasting longer. 

It felt like the magic of warmth and honey planting itself into their very earth.

Unsurprisingly to him, spring was Arya's favorite season. 

Of course it would be. She loved the flowers, she loved spending time outside and she loved feeling like nothing bad could ever happen and that's what spring was for her.

She's excited, he knows she is, especially now since the botanical gardens in Oldtown are open and running for the spring and summer time and into early fall.

It's her first spring in Oldtown and April, he finds, is the perfect month for it.

April with its cool breeze and soft feeling flowers.

One day, when they're just aimlessly walking around their quaint neighborhood and while Jon is off doing who knows what with Ygritte (neither of them really wants to know), Arya drags him along so they can go flower picking.

"We need nice flowers for the flat! Think of how lovely and fresh it'll feel to come home and just see all the bright flowers everywhere! We can even wear them in our hair!" 

She was so excited and how could he say no?

He drove them through wide and isolated roads, off to fields that everybody drove by but nobody ever stopped. 

There were flowers everywhere and the sun in the sky, with it's blue and lavender made the day seem all the more dreamy.

It was just them out there. Just them and the flowers.

Them and their thoughts and their secret gazes.

He wondered if she was thinking what he was thinking. If she thought about him half as much as he thought about her.

He doesn't find himself doubting that she feels the same way about him whenever it's just them like this.

"Look." She waves him over where she is in the middle of the field looking at a few different flowers.

He walks until he's standing beside her and she looks up at him with a smile in her eyes before picking one of the flowers and giving it to him.

"For you." She said.

The petals are wide and spread out, gently overlapping one another with a delicate and velvety feel to them. The flower itself was a light almost orange color.

"It's beautiful." He said smiling down at her and she smiled up at him.

"It's an ambrosia." She said, her voice a little softer than normal and a bit nervous, he wasn't sure why though.

She continued picking flowers to decorate the flat with, including baby's breath, blue and violet Canterbury bells, a few daisies and some tulips.

He picked some flowers of his own, (which she told him were called purple heart ease flowers) and then they were off.

On the drive back, she stuck a few daisies into his black locks, insisting the yellow in the center brought out the blue in his eyes.

He only looked at her amused and when they reached a stop light, he stuck a purple heart ease behind her ear.

She blushed and he put his eyes back on the road, smiling to himself much like she was.

The house was bright and alive with flowers everywhere. It was April and he was sure to never forget it.

Jon (the few times they'd managed to see him throughout the month) commented on it, saying it was nice and even threw in the word vibrant.

Arya beamed and hugged him, telling him that Gendry had shown her the field of flowers and helped her bring them home.

He gave Gendry a strange smile but didn't say a peep.

Gendry just brought his shoulders up to his ears and focused his attention back on the flowers that sat in the bases and pots littered all around their apartment.

He didn't really ever look at the flowers before, he never noticed the power of nature and just how captivating its beauty was. 

But Arya was there now and he showed him. He knew he'd never forget it now.

Or at the very least, he'd never look at flowers the same again.

* * *

**May**

The weather's gotten warmer and his birthday was coming up soon.

He didn't really celebrate his birthday. It had always been that way, even when he was younger. 

He was an only child and didn't really take to making friends, so it was usually him and his mother and they'd spend the day together while they'd go into the city to just walk and talk and spend time together.

With Jon as his roommate, he'd wake up to blueberry pancakes with a smiley face on them.

Jon would always say he just felt like making pancakes to celebrate the first week of May, but Gendry knew that he knew. And now this year it was little different.

It was also a little better.

He wakes up and the whole flat smells like breakfast.

When he walks into the kitchen after using the bathroom and brushing his teeth, he's met with colorful balloons floating all around the kitchen and scattered around the floor of the living room.

A 'Happy Birthday' banner hangs from the hall behind the dining table and Arya and Jon are stood by the tiny isle in the kitchen wearing birthday hats and equal grins of excitement as soon as he walks through.

"Happy birthday!" They say in unison and he doesn't bother fighting the grin from working its way to his face.

He sat on one of the stools against the kitchen counter where his breakfast already was. 

"How does it feel to be 24?" Jon asked and Gendry shrugged.

"A lot like being 23." 

Arya snorted and served herself some pancakes with fruit before sitting next to Gendry.

"What are your plans for the day?" She asked before stuffing her face with blueberry pancake.

Jon laughed from the other side of the counter and Arya looked over at him.

"What is it?"

Jon shook his head, "Nothing, just that Gendry doesn't really celebrate his birthday."

Arya turned to Gendry with wide eyes, "You don't celebrate your birthday?"

Gendry shook his head, "Not really, no. It's just a day."

Arya gasped at him, "Not it's not just a day. It's your birthday, therefore it's a special day."

Gendry looked over at her and saw the sincerity in her eyes before offering her a smile.

"I take it you like birthday's then?"

Jon snorted, "Arya lives for birthday's."

She threw a grape at him from where she sat and he caught it before tossing it in his mouth.

"I just think that if there's at least one day a person should be happy without a worry, it should be their birthday."

Gendry looked at her amused before finishing his breakfast.

As they all finished up eating and Jon headed out for the day, Arya ran through all the things she could do with Gendry for the day to celebrate his birthday.

"I know that look, I don't want a party." He pointed an accusatory finger at her and she only held her hands up innocently.

"Okay no party. What do you want to do?"

He wanted to kiss her, to hold her and never let her go but he couldn't say that, not when neither of them have crossed that line yet.

"We can just stay here, watch a few movies, eat some snacks."

Arya looked at him unsure and he laughed before grabbing her shoulders and looking her in the eyes, "I'm sure that's what I want to do. Now lets go to the living room."

Arya only furrowed her brows before nodding her head, "Okay. But we're going out later."

He laughed before they lounged it out in the living room, watching a few movies.

First it started off with Shrek, which they both couldn't stop themselves from quoting. 

Then it got to Hocus Pocus, and he took Arya by surprise when he started singing 'I put a spell on you' in perfect but scratchy harmony with Bette Midler.

By the time they watched three other movies, the sun was already beginning to set and Arya stood up, clapping her hands together.

"What?" He asked.

She rolled her eyes, "Go get ready. I'm taking you out all night to celebrate your birthday. No if's, and's or but's."

Gendry only gave his head a slight shake, a laugh escaping him before he got ready and let her take him out.

He threw some slacks on and a white button up, with some dress shoes and he's glad he did.

When he steps out of his room, he sees Arya waiting in the living room with a black thin strap dress that flared out above her knees. It was a simple dress but Arya's beauty accentuated it.

She had on black strappy sandals and her hair was down, framing her face. She also wore delicate necklace with a ruby hanging from it.

Simply put, she was a vision.

"Ready to go?" She smiled at him and he nodded.

They drove into the city as night reached around all of Oldtown.

The buildings around them lit up the dim streets and the stars in the sky made the night feel safer.

They mostly walked aimlessly around the city before they stopped at a restaurant and ate dinner together.

"I don't think we've ever eaten out before." He said, twirling his pasta in his fork.

Arya looked at him with wide eyes, "Yes we have, on Wednesday's when we-"

"Ice cream doesn't count Arya." He said, his voice laced in mirth.

Arya glared at him a little, "Ice cream definitely counts."

He dropped his fork and smiled at her, "Okay. Ice cream counts."

She smiled and they continued eating before they finished up and headed back out into the cities and into the little shops around that Oldtown had to offer.

They went to a little bookstore, where Arya bought two copies of a murder mystery for them to read and solve together before reaching the end.

They went to a candle store where Arya got new scents for the flat (and unbeknownst to her, he bought a few of her favorite scents for her).

And they eventually made it over to a little ice cream shop, Arya treating them each to a cone before they walked out to sit on a bench and enjoy their ice cream.

"I don't remember the last time I did this much on my birthday."

Arya looked at him as she ate her mint chocolate chip, "Really?"

He nodded, "Yeah. I'm not a very celebratory guy. Don't go out much, m'not very social actually."

Arya's eyes widened, "You seem pretty social to me."

"That's cause you're the only person I actually talk to."

They finished their cones in a comfortable silence before they left the bench and continued their walking through the city, the streets nearly deserted. 

"Thank you." 

He felt his eyes widen at her words, "For what?"

She smiled up at him before taking his hand in hers and giving it a squeeze, "For letting me be the person you talk to."

He felt his pulse rising and his heart racing and he's certain that the chemistry between them had never been as magnetic as it was in this moment and he also knew that it would only intesify.

That's what it was about Arya. 

He felt everything deeply around her and he knew there was no reverse on it. It was intensity and warmth and diving without consequence.

Her eyes sparkle through the night as they keep walking and when she teases him, he lifts her nearly over his shoulders, his arms wrapped around her thighs and feet popped up.

She's laughing wildly and he thinks they're pretty lucky that the streets are empty while it's just them in this moment on his birthday.

They make it back to the car and drive back home, where it's long past midnight, the day already over.

Jon is already fast asleep by the time they get there and he left a single cupcake on the counter for Gendry.

Arya goes to her room in an instant, kicking her shoes off before grabbing something off her dresser and running back out to meet Gendry in the living room.

"I got you something." She says and he looks over at her and the small wrapped box in her hand.

"Oh you didn't have to."

She waves him off, "You've become a very important person in my life and it's your birthday. I wanted to."

He felt his heart clench at her words and opened his hands as she reached to give him the box.

"Sorry, it's a little impractical." She laughed nervously and he shook his head.

"The fact that you did this at all. Don't apologize."

He unwraps the box and pulls out a small mahogany music box that had acorns carved into it.

He opened it and started turning the little crank on the side and a tune softly played out.

A smile slowly made a faint appearance on his face, "Is that 'My Featherbed'?" He breathed out.

Her eyes lit up and she nodded, "Yeah it is! I didn't know if you'd-"

"Arya, I love it." 

He wrapped his arms around her and she was quick to wrap her arms around him too.

"Thank you." He said softly, the side of his face pressed against her hair.

"Happy Birthday." She responded in a voice just as soft.

They pull away after a moment as the dimness of the living room really sets in. It's dark but he can see the glint in her eyes.

He feels his heart pounding, _hears_ it and he wouldn't be surprised if she did too.

His breath catches in his throat as he sees her step closer into his space and instinctively, his hands fall on her waist.

She lets out a slow breath as her hands clasp behind his neck and she leans forward.

He leans down and he's ready for it.

Ready because he knows it's happening, because they're both letting it happen.

His lips are about to meet hers when they hear a door down the hall open.

She pulls away and clears her throat and he takes a step back.

The lights in the living room flick on and Jon is there, rubbing sleep out of his eyes while they adjust to the new light.

"You guys finally decided to come home then?" He said.

He smiled at them, but it looked more like a grimace from him not being fully awake and his eyes still trying to adjust to the light.

Arya nodded and her cheeks were pink.

"Yeah. I'm actually going to head to bed now." 

Jon nodded his head and she turned over to look at Gendry.

Her eyes were a little round and her face was flushed. 

"Goodnight Gendry."

Her voice was breathless and he thinks it's the only thing he'll hear in his sleep tonight when he goes to sleep and dreams of her.

* * *

**June**

The rest of May flashes past him with quiet moments of almost's and what if's between him and Arya. 

Simple moments where they hold the other's gaze and their cheeks go pink at the memory of what happened on the night of his birthday, what _almost_ happened.

He doesn't know why he feels like a fumble of nerves every time he thinks of it, especially considering Arya had already kissed him twice before that.

But those didn't really count, now did they.

One had been because of the mistletoe above them and it was over before he even realized it was happening and the other was the byproduct of the pair of them going to kiss the other on the cheek with poor timing (maybe not poor timing, but neither of them were expecting it).

June is here and it's blazing. 

The end of the term had arrived a few short weeks after his birthday, towards the middle of May so most of their time had been spent at home or going out for the sake of being out of the apartment while the weather was so nice.

June is full of promise as much as it is full of heat.

They hadn't really spoken about that night. Not completely. 

Jon had come around a lot more often since then. He doesn't know if Jon suspected what almost happened, but the pure coincidence of him spending more time at the flat left no more for discussion of the meeting that had almost been between their lips.

Neither of them really understands why it takes so long for either of them to finally meet Ygritte, but with summer heat in full effect, Jon starts to bring her around and she's a fiery element added to the tension that nobody realized had been building.

She'd never cease to take an opportunity on teasing either of them on what she suspected were feelings rising to the surface and she would often readily point out that neither would deny her claims.

Jon didn't know what to make of it but she'd add in that Jon knows nothing and that would be enough to simmer the tension around them and leave room for more lighthearted conversation.

Truth be told, he stopped thinking altogether about Jon as an imposing factor upon the feelings he held for Arya.

Jon was first and foremost his roommate and the first friend he made at Oldtown.

He just also happened to be Arya's brother.

That didn't mean he factored into her dating life and who she felt what for.

It certainly didn't mean he should factor into whatever he felt for Arya.

He knew that now more than he ever did before. Especially with his mind keeping his birthday night at the front of his mind.

It was like the wake up call he needed to push him into doing something. 

He didn't have to keep how he felt to himself any longer, he could actually put his heart out there without the worry that it'll get trampled.

He knew his heart would be the safest it possibly could be with Arya.

He could put it out there with the thought, the possibility that it'll go somewhere.

The month rolls by fast and he feels time stopping only briefly towards the end of the month for Jon's birthday.

"Of course I'm dating a cancer, of course I am." Ygritte shook her head as she brought a cake out, setting it on the counter.

Jon laughed and kissed her on the cheek.

"What's your sign then Ygritte?" Grenn asked from where he sat on the couch.

Pyp, Grenn, Sam and Gilly, all friends and peers in Jon's department, had come over to the flat for Jon's birthday. 

It was a good small gathering and he'd heard him and Arya in the living room earlier in a group video chat with their family, making promises of celebrating in early July when they'd be visiting for Arya's birthday.

"I'm a sagittarius." Ygritte winked and Jon shook his head.

"Of course you are." Grenn laughed.

Pyp scrunched his face, "But your signs aren't very compatible?"

Ygritte and Jon exchanged a look with one another before nodding at Pyp and saying at the same time, "We know."

The room was filled with laughter and was completely alive with joy.

Arya was sat on the couch chatting away happily with Gilly when he catches her eye and she has that look again.

It's the same look that just leaves him feeling a little bit breathless and a little like he has no grip of any kind on reality.

He walks through the living room and opens the balcony door to just let the breeze in before the room got too stuffy, but then Jon strode up from behind with two beers in hand and walked to stand on the balcony, overlooking the smaller part of the city that they lived in.

He turned to smile at Gendry and waved him over.

Gendry looked back out to the living room, where Pyp and Grenn were having a drinking competition against Ygritte and Sam and he walked to stand out on the balcony beside Jon as he passed him a beer.

"I've never seen you so pensive." Jon spoke.

Gendry shrugged, "What do you mean?"

Jon looked at him with a look of hilarity, "I mean for nearly the last year your face is just always scrunched up like your stuck on one thought."

Gendry stared at Jon like a deer caught in headlights before taking a sip of his beer.

He never really considered Jon would be somebody to notice a change in his behavior, but had there really been a change in his behavior?

"Is it Arya?" 

He started coughing out his beer that he'd been drinking and Jon had to keep from laughing in order to help him out.

"What?" He says after he's pretty sure he won't choke on cheap westerosi ale.

"Arya, is it Arya? You seem different around her."

Gendry leaned back a little, "Different how?"

Jon looked at him like he was stupid and suddenly now more than in all the time of her living there, he saw his resemblance to Arya.

"Gendry, you and I both know that you have a strong aversion to people."

Gendry nodded his head a little, confusion laced all through his features, "So? What's your point?"

Jon rolled his eyes, "My point is you hate people but you always laugh with her."

Gendry went quiet at that, taking favor in looking up at the sky inside.

"Gendry it's not a bad thing. She just brings something out in you." Jon sighed, taking a sip.

He looked over at Jon, a wary look on his face, "You're not mad?" 

Jon nearly spit out his drink before he started laughing.

"Mad?"

"Jon she's your little sister."

Jon nodded, a smile on his face, "I'm aware and if things go South, I'll kick your ass but she's her own person. It seems to me the only people in control of where this goes are you and her."

Gendry smiled at Jon before taking another sip.

"So when are you going to tell her about your feelings?"

Gendry shrugged, "Not sure. We haven't really had time to talk."

Jon looked at him, a smile in his eyes a lot like Arya's.

"Well she likes words, so you better get cracking."

The rest of Jon's birthday goes by in a flash, with a very off key rendition of 'happy birthday' from all of them to jon, an apple crumble cake, and a few rounds of card games, charades and even some karaoke.

June looks a lot like that for him, with even a few nights of Arya pulling him out of the apartment for them to drive somewhere and enjoy the nice weather. 

Summer was just getting started and it already looked so promising.

* * *

**July**

The heat, worse than June, hit them with full force.

July was what he and many others considered the apex of summer.

It was the month that epitomized staying out late while the heat hugged your skin, night swimming and days at the fair.

Even better, it was also when Arya was born.

He felt like Arya had done such a great job at making him enjoy his birthday for the first time in a long time and naturally, he wanted to return the favor.

He already knew that her and Jon's family were coming down from Winterfell for the second week of July to celebrate her 21st birthday on the 12th, staying in Oldtown for a short summer vacation and then heading back to their respective locations but before they got there, he wanted to celebrate just the two of them.

Arya was on the couch clicking through channels when she looked over at Gendry and nodded her over at the television set.

"What do you think, Gendry? Cupcake Wars or Chopped?" 

Gendry shook his head, "I think neither. Get ready."

Arya looked at him with wide eyes, "Excuse me?"

He laughed at her expression, "Come on, we're going out. We're going to celebrate your birthday today, just you and me."

Arya's expression changed and her cheeks were pink. She smiled at him and got up.

"Where are we going?" Her voice was light with surprise and elation.

"That's a surprise." He smiled at her and she shook her head before going to get ready.

When they got out, he drove them around the city much like the night of his birthday only today it was different.

Today they were celebrating her birthday and sure, technically her birthday wasn't today and was actually a week away, but it still counted.

Today would be different because today wouldn't end in what-if's. It would end with him telling her how he feels though he has an inkling that she probably already knows.

He drove them up towards one of many destinations for the day and saw her face light up when they stepped out.

"Go-karting?" She beamed up at him.

He smiled and nodded at her, "Jon told me you used to love them and went all the time when you were kids."

She nodded, thrill taking over her features, "I did- I do! Come on, lets go!"

She grabbed his hand in hers and pulled him forward and he surrendered to the feeling shooting up his arm from where her hand held his.

"Are we sharing a kart or?" He asked and she gave him a look of mischief. 

"Not at all. I'm taking you down, Waters."

His eyes widened as he smiled at her, "We'll see."

They did see and after a few times around the lap, Arya left him in her dust.

By the end of go karting, she was buzzing from excitement.

"Sorry, I'm just the fastest in the family."

"The fastest in Westeros, more like." He mumbled, shaking his head with a smile, "Come on, lets go. Day's not over yet."

She smiled and nodded, following him back to the car. He drove them to a small painting shop where they paint for an hour.

"Oh! I've always wanted to go to one of these." She said as they walked into the establishment.

He smiled at her and checked them in while they got ready to follow their painting instructor.

There was wine and they were playing old reruns of the office while they and the people around them painted away.

By the end, they had both managed to successfully paint a sword and a hammer.

The sun was getting ready to set and he put the paintings in the backseat of the car.

"One last stop." He said to her and she looked over at him. 

That look told him everything he needed to know. There was no backing out now. He needed her to know.

He drove them out down those wide, isolated roads to where the flower fields were.

He heard her suck in a breath once she realized where they were heading.

The sky was golden, mixing in with orange as the sun was hanging lower and lower.

The flowers were still as beautiful as ever and even more vibrant than the last time they had been there, the summer shade hugging each one.

They walked through the field and sat in the middle of it all.

"This is beautiful Gendry." Her voice was soft like he hadn't heard it before. 

Her eyes were gleaming when he looked into them and he knew then in that moment the promise of loving something as long as you were lucky enough to love it.

"Wanted to do something special." He admitted.

"Why?" 

He guffawed at her, "What do you mean why?"

She rolled her eyes, "You know what I mean. Why something special?"

"Arya-" He stopped himself short, "I'm not very good at this."

"What and you think I am?"

Gendry shrugged sheepishly at her, "You're Arya."

Arya snorted, "and what does that mean?"

He waved his hands around a bit awkwardly, "Arya. Spectacular with people."

She laughed and he suddenly felt very on track to do this.

"I'll give you that I guess."

He smiled at her before taking her hand in his. 

"I like you, Arya. I like you more than I've ever liked anyone before. I just- I fell for you and I'm still falling and I don't think it'll ever stop, not that I'd want it to."

She exhaled and he looked at her, "When you moved in, even before that when you visited for the week, I was kicking myself over feeling what I was feeling for my roommates little sister. But then time went on and the only thing that scared me anymore was not telling you how I felt. I was scared of keeping this inside me without you ever knowing these feelings I have."

She squeezed his hand and he breathed in deep, "I'm not very good with words-" 

She snorted, "I'd beg to differ."

He laughed, "I'm not. I've never expressed what I was feeling, never channeled what I was feeling into something like this before. But I knew I had to try if there was even the sliver of a chance that you might feel the same."

"Well I do." She said quietly.

"Sorry, what was that?" He teased.

She lifted her head and rolled her eyes, shoving his shoulder back, "You heard me!"

"I don't think I did, actually." He laughed and she shoved him again until he was laying flat in the flower field.

He was looking up at her like she put the sun up in the sky, like every good thing about any and all days was solely because of her.

"I feel the same," She started softly as she was looking down at him, her hand interlocked with his and resting comfortably against his chest.

"I like you, a lot. I think Ned Dayne might have spoiled that for you a few months back," They both started laughing, "But I've fallen for you too. I keep falling and it's never felt so nice before. Never felt so much like-"

"Home." He finished for her and she nodded, her grey eyes gazing into his blue ones.

He sat up and cupped one cheek with his hand very gently.

She rested her head against him palm, eyes closing contently. 

He smiled at her, at how beautiful she looked and how well she fit with him.

She opened her eyes and there was the same look that followed him. 

She leaned forward and he brought his other hand to hold her waist as hers found their way into his hair.

They met in the middle and it was better than anything he had been expecting. 

It was flowers in the heat of July, mint chocolate chip on Thanksgiving, moving in in September, the monster mash after a long and tiring day of classes in October.

It was Arya, flooding his senses with her smooth lips, the freckles on her nose and those grey eyes that pierced his heart.

It was tasting what he didn't know was his favorite taste until now.

They pulled away and she laughed a little, "I hear dating your roommates isn't very smart."

He leaned his forehead against hers, "I don't think very many people have ever had a roommate quite like you."

When they get home that night, Jon's on the couch with Sam and Gilly and it doesn't take any of them very long to see that there are a few wild daisies stuck in either of their heads or that their hands are interlocked and their cheeks are very rosy.

Jon smiles but says nothing and Gilly sighs romantically while Sam gives them both an encouraging thumbs up.

Her family arrives later in the week and they celebrate her birthday and don't cease the opportunities to tease them about dating and to tease Jon about having to live with them now.

"I almost forgot to give you your birthday present." He says to her while she pours Robb another glass of Dornish wine.

"You didn't have to get me a gift."

He gave her a look and after she sets the wine down in front of Robb, she holds her hands up, "Alright, alright." She laughs lightly before leaning up to give him a kiss on the cheek.

He dropped a small grey pouch in front of her and she pulled the strings before it opened, taking out what appeared to be a silver locket with a small wolf engraved on it..

She gasped, "Gendry it's beautiful. You really didn't-"

"I wanted to." He cut her short before she reached her hand up to his face to gently guide him to hers, kissing him soundly. 

They heard a few cheers around and he couldn't find it in himself to really care that they kissed in front of her family.

He was just happy he managed to get himself here.

* * *

**August**

This time around he didn't have to worry about the same things he did last August.

This time around they were together.

He put himself out there and it wasn't like anything else that ever scared him before. It was worth the risk, worth the worry and worth that whole year of pent up emotion, not knowing where it would lead him.

They registered for classes and in a few short weeks, the fall semester would be starting again soon but this year it was better.

She lived with him, actually lived with him there and he didn't have be terrified of feeling his heart beating out of his chest whenever she caught his eye.

He didn't have to worry about ignoring her in his bull t-shirt because she wore it to bed now and she wore it very comfortably.

It looked better on her anyways, he thought.

Sometimes she'll visit him bedroom once they've all gone to bed for the night because she wants to fall asleep with him and well, he's no idiot and he's very much head over heels for his girlfriend so of course he falls asleep with her.

This August is different than last because she wasn't just Jon's little sister, she wasn't just visiting.

She was his roommate and quite possibly the only person he'd share anything with. 

He can't count his lucky stars and thank them enough for bringing her into his life, for proving that falling hard and falling slow were worth the wonder.

It's beautiful and confusing and nothing short of taking his breath away but he thinks it makes perfect sense because of course it would happen that way with Arya.

There was no other way to fall for her other than completely. 

And he has.

**Author's Note:**

> ambrosia: love returned  
> baby's breath: everlasting love  
> canterbury bells: constancy  
> purple heart ease: you occupy my thoughts
> 
> Be well.


End file.
